More Than Life Itself
by GreenTurtlesWhoEatDaffodils
Summary: PG13 for mature issues; James and Lily are married in a time of peril, where no man or woman is safe, wizard or muggle and Lily has something important to tell James. Will Sirius' obnoxiousness ruin the blissful moment?
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Lily wrote this chapter, as well as the second one.  She wrote this before we decided to make a conjoined penname.  This is our first story. Hope you like it!

~Daffodil~

*****CHAPTER ONE*****

One sunny morning, Lily woke up. She felt horrible, really sick. _Maybe it's the flu…_ She thought. Lily took a Pepper-Up Potion, and it worked for maybe ten minutes, but then the wave of nausea came back in full force.  
  
James woke up to the sound of Lily vomiting in the bathroom. "Lily? What's wrong? Are you okay?"  
  
"Yeah. I'm fine." Lily said, wiping her hand across her mouth. "I'm just not feeling well."  
  
"Maybe you shouldn't go in this morning." He said, rubbing her back.  
  
"You know I can't stay home!" Lily protested. "There aren't many Aurors coming in anymore. So many are being injured and killed."  
  
"Yet another reason for you to stay home. It's not safe. Stay home, Lily."  
  
"Well, I really shouldn't-" Lily got sick again. "Okay…" James put Lily in bed and sent an owl to Remus.  
  
'Hey, Remus-  
It's James. Look, can you do me a favor? Lily's really not feeling well now, d'you mind checking up on her for the next few days? I'd really appreciate it. Thanks, mate. James.'  
  
James sent his owl, Barnacles, to Remus, asking Barnacles to find Remus as quickly as possible. James knew there was no point in going back to bed, since Lily was in it and he'd just have to wake up in ten minutes again anyway. So he got ready to leave. Just as he was about to Disapparate, his owl appeared. James read the brief note quickly. Remus had agreed. James kissed Lily good-bye and left.  
  
*****  
  
Lily had gotten out of bed to eat. When she saw the leftover shrimp, she felt the nausea build. _Oh no,_ she thought. Then she spotted the jar of pickles. She smiled and pulled out the jar and ate the contents ravenously. Lily licked her fingers delicately. Lily felt another wave. She raced to the bucket sitting under the little table and gagged.   
  
When Lily was done, she thought to herself, hence thinking,_ I just hope it's never this bad when I'm pregnant…_ Lily jumped up._ When was the last time she had... Err, gotten it? _She couldn't remember. It didn't seem that important. "Accio calendar!" Lily pointed her wand at the calendar hanging. "August… September… 16th. What's today? November 15th. I skipped last month and this month's late. SO what?? I'm probably just thrown off schedule, from all the emotional distress." _But what about this sickness? _A nagging voice said. _And the pickles?_ "Coincidence. I ate something bad the other night." Lily shoved aside nearly all thoughts of pregnancy.  
  
"Hello? Lily?" Remus called out.  
  
"Remus? What are you doing here?"  
  
"James asked me to check up on you. So I said, 'Why not? I have nothing better to do.'"  
  
"Oh, so James told you to check up on me?!" Lily's face flushed. "I can take care of myself when I'm sick!! I don't need any help!!" Remus' eyes voiced confusion, then realization as he saw her pull out her wand and say, "Accio pickles!" Remus laughed. "What are you gawkin' at?" Lily asked him crossly.  
  
"Congratulations on your baby, Lily." Lily looked stunned, then seemed to accept the answer.  
  
"Thanks. How'd you know?"  
  
"Mood swings, morning sickness, and an unnatural craving for pickles. Classic signs."  
  
Lily snorted. "Yeah. And I feel fat. And I'm not even showing yet. Don't say anything to James yet. I've only just found out."  
  
"Okay. Do you want me to stay?" Remus sat down at the table.  
  
"Sure. I need company." Lily picked up the deck of playing cards and shuffled them. "Wanna play Rummy?"  
  
Remus grimaced. "No, 'cause you cheat." Lily gave him the picture of innocent. He smiled. "Well, how about Black Jack?"  
  
"Sure. You're dealer. And don't argue with the pregnant woman. She is always right."  
  
*****  
  
The pair spent the next few days together, while James was out saving the world and protecting people from the Dark Wizard. Such a hero… One evening, a few weeks after James came home, Sirius invited himself over for dinner. "Hullo, James. Remus, Lily." He nodded at them. "Don't mind if a lonely fellow eats dinner with you, do you, buddy?"  
  
"No, of course not, Sirius. Help yourself." Lily said. Sirius didn't catch the sarcastic tone in her voice.  
  
"There's a doll." He said, smiling as he sat down. He whipped out a magazine and asked, "So, have you all seen who's on the front cover of Witch Weekly?"  
  
"No. Who, Sirius? Enlighten us." Lily said acidly.  
  
"What's up her arse, James? You need to bed that wench!" Sirius attempted to discreetly whisper to James.  
  
"What's up my arse?? I'll tell you just what exactly is up my arse!"  
  
James could see a storm arriving and attempted to smooth it over. "No, no, no, Lily, that's perfectly-"  
  
"Shut up, James!" He fell silent, Remus giggling occasionally, silently. Lily went on about all the organs she had and didn't have, in her body. She went on to curse the male anatomy and men in general. Her diatribe was so fluent, effortless, and so insulting that James, Sirius and Remus were all amazed.  
  
Remus had stopped giggling, and sat with his mouth shaped in a perfect O. James sat, his jaw dropped. Sirius had been eating, but stopped when Lily shouted, "I'm sick of being surrounded by men! I need to get away from the testosterone and be with women for a change, with estrogen!!" Lily ran out, into the living room. The three men could hear her heavy footsteps on the steps, and the slamming of a door in the distance.  
  
Sirius squealed, "Did she just-"   
  
"Say 'testosterone' and 'estrogen' in the same sentence?" James finished and nodded. "So, what was all that about?" he asked Remus.  
  
"That's for Lily to tell you. I can't." He stood. Sirius hounded Remus ("Oh, go on, what did you mean??").  
  
"James!" Sirius barked. James looked at him. "Don't you want to know what Lily said to Remus??"  
  
"Not particularly. If I did, I'd just ask her."  
  
"You might want to know, Jamie-boy." Remus said with a small smile.  
  
James jumped up. "What d'you mean??"  
  
"I thought you said, 'If I want to know, I'll ask her.'" Remustaunted.  
  
"I'm terrified to ask her, is the truth of it!"  
  
"It's really not that bad, James. Go ask her."  
  
"Does she want something?"  
  
"Maybe."  
  
"Is it something big?"  
  
"Yes, if you look at it as…big." Remus smiled as he said it. Mental images crossed through James' mind.  
  
"Does she want a divorce?" He asked timidly.  
  
"God, James! Be real, man! Why would Lily divorce you??"  
  
"I don't know, I want to know! Tell me!!" Remus shook his head.  
  
"Go ask Lily." James bowed his head. "Okay…" He trudged up the stairs. "Oh, and James? Don't say the words fat, pickles, or feet." Remus added. James shot Remus a look that clearly said, 'You're a dead man.'  
  
Remus laughed and Sirius snapped out of his reverie. "Tell me." So Remus told him.  
  
"Our James and Lily?!?" Sirius squealed.   
  
"Yup." Remus nodded.  
  
"A little Prongs, just think of all the pranks we could teach him!!"   
  
"What makes you think it'll be a boy??"  
  
"What else would it be, Remus? How could we teach a little Evans the rules of Marauding?? It would be heresy!"   
  
_*Meanwhile, back at the ranch…*_ It's not really at a ranch, this is just a device to get back to something else in the story that is happening.  
  
"Lily? Can you open the door?"_ It was James… _Lily thought. _Now's the time to tell him. _ "Okay…" James waited until he heard the click of the door unlocking. He went in. "Lily, is there something going on?"  
  
"Yes. James, I need to tell you… something." Lily watched as a look of horror crossed James' face. His face was like an open book, it was so easy to read. "Don't worry, I'm not asking for a divorce." James smiled. _God, I love that smile…_ Lily thought. _No wait, the baby… Tell James…_  
  
"Well, James, y'see, It goes something like-er, wait, umm… James, what d'you feel about-well, erm, I'm just gonna say… James, I'm pregnant." Lily had turned bright red at trying to get out the big long speech she had formed, yet to have forgotten it all. She looked up at James' brown eyes and didn't quite know what she saw there. He was definitely confused, just like the typical male. Was he shocked? Yes…  
  
James couldn't find his voice. He blinked a few times, cleared his throat and asked, "Is it mine?" He had no idea what to say or think, so he asked the first question that popped into his head.  
  
Now it was Lily's turn to be surprised. "Wha-wha- of course it's yours! What d'you reckon I am? Some sort of-sc-scarlet woman?! _Well?_ Aren't you excited? We're going to have a baby." She looked at James expectantly. He grinned, pulled her into a big hug and said, "Of course I'm excited! We need to plan this out, Lily."  
  
Lily blinked. "The deed's already done, James."  
  
"I know that. I meant like a bedroom and a playroom…" James continued on until Lily stopped him with a kiss on the lips.  
  
"I love you more than life itself, Lily Potter." James whispered as he leaned down to kiss his beautiful wife.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N- Lily wrote this chapter.  Nice job darling.  We are currently working on number three!**

**CHAPTER TWO: LILY'S PREGNANCY**

  
"Oh, hello, Sirius, Remus, Peter. James should be home any minute now," Lily greeted the three as soon as they had Apparated in her living room.   
  
"Hello, Lily," Remus said. Sirius gave her his usual grin and Peter smiled, his watery eyes flitting around nervously. He glanced at her face and quickly dropped his gaze. He refused to make eye contact for the rest of his stay, which was approximately ten minutes. "Urgent call. My mas-boss wanted me to come directly after I saw how you were."   
  
Sirius' smile fell. "Come on, Wormtail! Stay longer! We never see each other anymore. And now Lily's having a baby! James' baby! Just say a little longer." He demanded.   
  
Peter Pettigrew whined, "I-I can't, Sirius."   
  
"It's okay, Peter. If your boss really wants you to go in, then you can go. I'll tell James it was urgent."   
  
"Thank you, Lily." He murmured. Peter Pettigrew put on his cloak and left, muttering under his breath, "What have I gotten myself into...?"   
  
Remus frowned, and Sirius rolled his eyes. "Urgent my left feet. He's probably out trying to pick up the babies. And I don't mean the kind of baby you're having, Lily."   
  
"Are you harassing my wife, Padfoot?" James came lumbering into the kitchen. He kissed Lily on the forehead and sat down.   
  
"James, you're late."   
  
"Lily, I know! I'm sorry. I was held up at the office, there's been lots of things going on what with all these killings, and this mad Dark Lord..." James ran his hands through his hair. He looked more tired and he wasn't getting enough sleep. And he was worried. How could he and Lily manage to keep their child safe from this Dark Lord, this Lord Voldemort? It was very hard and worrisome.   
  
"I don't see why I have to stay here and you get to do all the work, James Potter." Lily spoke up.   
  
"Lily, we've been through this, the baby's coming."   
  
"I know that, when do you think I was born, yesterday? But I can still work, you know. It's so boring here, just sitting here all by myself. I'm not getting any younger. Older, maybe, fatter, yes! I have no one to talk to except the garden gnomes. And a fat lot of good company they are! And FAT! I'm FAT!! I'm so huge; I can't even see my feet! My FEET!" She threw down the latest victim of a pickle onto the table in exasperation. "My feet! They're swollen, I can't even fit them into my shoes!" Lily had burst into tears. Sirius and Remus, who had never seen a pregnant woman act in this way, sat in stunned silence, as Lily jumped up and waddled from the room. All they could hear was the creaking of steps, then the slam of a door.   
  
James jumped from the table. Sirius and Remus followed him to the bedroom door, where James started begging. "Lily, please, love, come out..."   
  
"No! I'm fat! I'm ugly and fat!"   
  
"No, Lily, sweetheart, no you're not, please come out!"   
  
"I'm not coming out!!!" She shouted with a tone of finality in her voice. James exhaled. "Fine..."   
  
He motioned for his friends to follow him. "She won't be out for a while yet. Third time this week. And before I left yesterday, she was shouting at me to clean the whole house when I got back." He nodded up towards the ceiling. "Blew up on me. 'James Potter, you're the reason I've got swollen feet!' Just because I asked her if she was done with the morning paper..." Sirius burst into laughter. "I had to clean the whole bloody place without magic!"   
  
Sirius stopped mid-giggle. "Without magic?" he asked, breathlessly. "It must've taken you forever!" Remus exclaimed in disbelief.   
  
"Forever and a day," James muttered.   
  
Sirius looked at James in amazement. "She's gone mad! You're only one man, James."   
  
James snorted, and then looked around. "Oy, where's Peter? I thought I asked him to come over, too."   
  
Sirius rolled his eyes, and Remus let out a cynical laugh. "That little arse? Left not ten minutes after he got here. Said his boss wanted him to come over. It's a bloody Sunday evening!"   
  
The three decided to reminisce about old times. "Ah, let's reminisce about old times, mates," Remus said, winking at the authors roguishly.   
  
"Ah, yes, well, remember that one time that we told James if he put a..." Sirius ran off about all the jokes he and Remus had pulled on James, and the three laughed about all the pranks they had done on the Slytherins ("Dirty bastards, weren't they?"), including enchanting Severus Snape's quills to burst into a bawdy parody of God Save the Queen each time he put quill to paper.   
  
"Oy, remember the time we told Frank Logbottom if he danced the salsa around that statue of Helga the Horrid, she'll open up and give you Sugar Quills? He did it, and got caught by the caretaker!"   
  
"Oh yea, and he told McGonagall that Longbottom was 'performing immature mating rituals' with a girl in the halls! And Frank was so shocked, he didn't even deny it!"   
  
"And McGonagall was so mortified, her face got all red... Whenever Frank passed that statue on the way to Quidditch practice, his eyes'd get all big and he'd start laughing." Sirius smiled. "Oh, blimey, I'd love to stay, James, matey, really I would... But I've got to go. My job, you know." James grinned at him.   
  
Remus stretched his legs out. "I'd better get going as well. I've got to go, tonight's the full moon, you know..." he said. They all said their goodbyes, and Sirius and Remus prepared to Disapparate, when- "Well, how about a good-bye for me, then?" Lily stood in the doorway, looking particularly cross.   
  
Remus crossed the living room and hugged Lily tightly. She smiled, and he whispered in her ear, "Go easy on him, he's just trying to make it easier for you all." She smiled again and said, "Oh, go on with you."   
  
Sirius waited in front of her. She tried to look unsympathetic, but couldn't. She hugged him, and he kissed her cheek. "See you, Lily." He said, before bounding across the room to join Remus. They Disapparated.   
  
"Lily... do you know I'm only trying to do what's-" he was interrupted by Lily kissing him. She sighed, and pulled away. "James Potter, you're the reason I love you." He smiled and kissed her back.

**A/N- Please R/R!!! THANKS!!!!******


End file.
